Board mulls new seating for sports complex

Published 4:37 pm, Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Lee v Midland High football on a Friday in West Texas at the Grande Communications Stadium.

Lee v Midland High football on a Friday in West Texas at the Grande Communications Stadium.

Photo: Cindeka Nealy

Board mulls new seating for sports complex

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It was the tale of two seats at the meeting for the Midland Football-Soccer and Baseball Complex Development Corp. (4B) board on Wednesday.

By the end of the afternoon, board members decided to go with the same chair model for plans that involve both the Citibank Ballpark and Grande Communications Stadium receiving all new seats, a move that will save roughly $42,000 in the midst of the capital improvement project.

The board originally planned to order two different types of seats for the stadiums, which currently have different seat models. While the seats in Citibank Ballpark have openings, or slats, in the back for airflow, those in Grande Communications do not. It's a subtle difference that board members originally said was intended to coordinate with the weather during seasons at each complex, as well as aesthetics. Apart from the backs, the seats are the same, said Tina Jauz, director of Community Services.

The original bid shows that the company would provide for the baseball stadium 4,709 seats with slats in the back at a price of $94.80 each, for a total of more than $446,000. The total cost of providing the football stadium with 4,042 of the chosen seats, which had a solid back and were valued at $105.20 each, would be more than $425,000. By using the slatted seat model in both complexes, the price for the seats will be cut by roughly $42,000.

One board member said it was a "moot point" to talk about cold weather bothering people sitting in slatted-back seats, since they will most likely bring jackets or blankets on a cold day. Chairman Ken Marks said the savings were significant enough to use the same seats.

The seat purchases will be made using 4B sales tax revenue, which is able to be used for capital improvements, maintenance and payment of debt for the sports complex. The board anticipated about $8.1 million in sales tax revenue in its budget for the new fiscal year, which is an increase of $1.8 million over the previous fiscal year's budget. About $1.69 million of that was recommended to be spent between the two complexes on capital improvements in the coming year.

The original estimated cost for the seats was $1.05 million, but the lowest bid received, which was made by the American Seating Co. based out of Michigan, came in at almost $961,000. With the cheaper seats, that total should be closer to $917,000, which is about $133,000 under the original estimated cost, board members said. Bids were opened Monday, and three different companies offered a bid. The manufacturer of the sports complex's original seats, Hussey Seating, did not respond with a bid.

American Seating Co.'s bid allotted $719,375 for materials and $227,342 for labor involved; a $14,185 bond to guarantee the project is included. Delivery can be made within 20 weeks after receipt of order, and the work can be completed in 84 days, according to the bid proposal.

The board's goal was to be ready to begin seat installation in December, but Jauz said the group is ahead of schedule so far.

The seats have a five-year warranty for their blue color, five years for mechanical or hardware issues, and 10 years for the cast iron. A representative from the company told Jauz that the seats often last anywhere from 20 to 30 years. The same seats have been installed in the stadiums that house the Florida Marlins and Texas A&M University's baseball team. The swivel seats already existing on the concourse level at the ballpark also were made by American Seating Co.

The original seats, which are almost 10 years old, all have cracks in them, said RockHounds assistant general manager Ray Fieldhouse. The concrete behind many of the current seats, which are mounted to the cement on the row behind them, is beginning to show stress and will need to be repaired before the new seats, which will be mounted to the floor, are installed. That work will be funded by the complex's maintenance budget, said Jauz.

Both Citibank and Grande received some new seats one year ago. Citibank replaced three sections of seating behind home plate, while Grande put in two new sections of about the equal number of chairs. Though not necessarily the only reason for the new chairs' replacement, Fieldhouse said that the complex received "extreme negative feedback from season ticket holders" about the spacing and comfort of the new seating.

The contract for the new seating likely will be considered for approval by the city council on Oct. 23, Jauz said.

Also at the meeting, the board commended the RockHounds for increased revenue for the fiscal year that ended Sunday.

The Scharbauer Sports Complex saw a 25.9 percent increase in actual revenue from its budgeted amount for the 2011-2012 fiscal year, bringing in $456,789. That amount is 29 percent more than what the complex earned in the previous year and 68 percent more than fiscal year 2009-2010, which was before the club took over the management of sports complex marketing operations.